‘Munsters’ Reboot Pilot Features Cannibals & Ancient Shapeshifters

Executive producer/writer Bryan Fuller is well-renowned for his ability to create darkly off-kilter dramedy shows, be it the Grim Reaper fantasy Dead Like Me, the quirky character piece Wonderfalls, and his whimsical supernatural murder-mystery series, Pushing Daisies.

NBC has officially put in an order for the pilot episode of Fuller’s newest project, The Munsters, a reboot of the famous 1960s sitcom about a family of classic Universal monster types. Now that some concrete details about the show have been released, it’s all too clear: this will indeed be a “darker, edgier” take on the original Munsters property.

Bryan Singer is slated to direct the pilot episode for Fuller’s Munsters revamp; it will mark the X-Men franchise veteran’s fourth TV directing effort, alongside his work on two early episodes of House M.D. (including the pilot) and the ABC TV movie, Football Wives. In addition to being “visually striking,” Singer’s pilot will also boast some comparatively macabre takes on the original Munsters characters.

Here are the tidbits that have been revealed about the Munsters reboot pilot so far (via BD Horror News):

The plot sees the eponymous family forced to move to a new location, after the 10-year-old Eddie Munster (unaware that he is in fact a werewolf) transforms and attacks his peers on a scouting trip.

Grandpa Munster is now a 600-year-old “shapeshifter,” rather than a Dracula-like vampire.

Lily Munster now suffers from an eating disorder – namely, she likes to snack on suicide victims.

Marilyn Munster is a regular human who was adopted by the family, after her own cannibalistic mother attempted to eat her (when she was an infant).

Insiders have also been keen to emphasize (in case it wasn’t already abundantly clear): Fuller’s Munsters is not at all a strict remake of its predecessor. The show is instead being sold as a tonal and stylistic hybrid of ABC’s Modern Family and HBO’s True Blood (albeit, with less graphic content than the latter).

Fuller’s previous TV show creations have all been fairly short-lived series that managed to secure a small, but loyal fanbase, and are now considered cult titles. Given the morose content and unusual genre-blending nature of his Munsters reboot, it could easily end up following suit.

For all intents and purposes, it sounds as though Fuller’s Munsters reboot will essentially amount to the modern-day equivalent of the original show. That nearly 50-year-old series, after all, was a semi-parody of not only the classic representation of supernatural entities like vampires and Frankenstein’s monster; it also poked fun at the conventions of “All-American Family” sitcoms (especially, Leave it to Beaver) that were popular during the 1950s and early ’60s.

Nowadays, of course, not only is the entertainment industry obsessed with offering “darker and grittier” takes on older franchises and properties, but “non-traditional” family sitcoms are more than norm, rather than the exception. So, in that sense, Fuller’s Munsters will be in the same mold of its inspiration, seeing how it too aims to comically upend popular contemporary TV show tropes.

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We will continue to keep you updated on the status of The Munsters as more information is released.